Happy Memorial Day! Summer is finally here, which means festival season is in full swing. Across the globe, there are more fests than ever before-- how do you choose? Here, we've assembled a list of our 20 best bets for 2012, 10 in North America and 10 in Europe.
And, of course, we'll see you at the Pitchfork Music Festival, taking place in Chicago's Union Park July 13-15, featuring Vampire Weekend, Feist, Beach House, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Hot Chip, Dirty Projectors, Flying Lotus, Grimes, Sleigh Bells, A$AP Rocky, Cloud Nothings, Danny Brown, Cults, Japandroids, Wild Flag, and so many more. Single day tickets are on sale now.
So slather on the sunscreen, drink plenty of water, and stock up on earplugs. It's going to be a long, hot, loud summer.
NORTH AMERICA
WHAT: Roots Picnic
WHEN: June 2-3
WHERE: Philadelphia, PA
WHO: The Roots, James Murphy, St. Vincent, De La Soul, Danny Brown, Diplo, De La Soul, Major Lazer, Kid Cudi, tUnE-yArDs, Shabazz Palaces, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, and more
The Roots' annual hometown festival offers a mix of rap and indie rock heavy hitters, performing on the waterfront. The Roots will back up De La Soul and Rakim will perform Paid in Full in its entirety.
WHAT: Hot 97's Summer Jam
WHEN: June 3
WHERE: East Rutherford, New Jersey
WHO: Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross and Maybach Music, Waka Flocka Flame, 2 Chainz, Meek Mill, Young Jeezy, DJ Khaled, and more on the main stage, plus Azealia Banks, A$AP Rocky, Pusha T, Kendrick Lamar, Big K.R.I.T., Schoolboy Q at the pre-show.
New York radio station Hot 97's legendary hip-hop fest will undoubtedly feature a raft of guest appearances. Plus: autograph signings, trivia contests, Summer Jam logo tattoos, and something called "the Eastside Gynecology Pavilion" (yikes!)
WHAT: Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival
WHEN: June 7-10
WHERE: Manchester, Tennessee
WHO: Radiohead, Bon Iver, Danny Brown, Kendrick Lamar, Flying Lotus, Feist, St. Vincent, the Shins, the Beach Boys, the Roots, tUnE-yArDs, Major Lazer, Santigold, SBTRKT, Kurt Vile, EMA, more
In addition to the bands, Bonnaroo also offers a Comedy Central-curated lineup of comedians, a silent disco, a movie tent, a shopping center, a hair salon, a poster show, a "big ass water slide," and a beer festival. "The Academy" offers workshops in "art, theatre, percussion, break dancing, instrument building, and gardening."
WHAT: Osheaga Music and Arts Festival
WHEN: August 3-5
WHERE: Montreal, Quebec
WHO: The Weeknd, Sigur Rós, M83, the Shins, Snoop Dogg, A$AP Rocky, the Black Keys, Feist, Atlas Sound, MGMT, Justice, the Walkmen, Yeasayer, Dum Dum Girls, Metric, Florence & the Machine, Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party, the Jesus and Mary Chain, Amadou & Mariam, Passion Pit, more
The picturesque Parc-Jean Drapeau on Ile Ste-Hélène offers forested areas, flowerbeds, and open-air artwork. A nice, serene backdrop for a Snoop Dogg set.
WHAT: Lollapalooza
WHEN: August 3-5
WHERE: Chicago, IL
WHO: Black Sabbath, Jack White, the Weeknd, Justice, Frank Ocean, Black Sabbath, At the Drive-In, Passion Pit, Twin Shadow, Sigur Rós, Die Antwoord, M83, the Black Keys, Bloc Party, Chairlift, the Afghan Whigs, Franz Ferdinand, tUnE-yArDs, Twin Shadow, the Tallest Man on Earth, more
The alt-rock behemoth takes over Chicago's Grant Park with local food, a kid's stage, a dance stage, and more.
WHAT: Woodsist Festival
WHEN: August 4-5
WHERE: Big Sur, CA
WHO: Woods, Real Estate, Fresh and Onlys, Thee Oh Sees, White Fence, Sun Araw, Ducktails, Pierced Arrows, Mantles, Peaking Lights
Woodsist Records, run by the band Woods, brings out their stacked roster and a few friends for their annual festival at the Henry Miller Library
WHAT: Rock the Bells
WHEN: August 18-19, 25-26 and September 1-2
WHERE: San Bernardino, CA, Mountain View, CA and Holmdel, NJ
WHO: Missy Elliott and Timbaland, Dipset, A$AP Rocky, Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q, Nas, Too $hort, Slick Rick, Salt-n-Pepa, RZA, Ice Cube, Atmosphere, Yelawolf, DJ Quik, more
The traveling hip-hop extravaganza hits three locations this year. Bone Thugs-N-Harmony will reunite to play E. 1999 Eternal in its entirety, Method Man and Redman will perform Blackout in full, and the Hit Squad (EPMD, Redman, Das EFX, K-Solo, and Keith Murray) will reunite.
WHAT: Budweiser Made in America Festival
WHEN: September 1-2
WHERE: Philadelphia, PA
WHO: Jay-Z, D'Angelo, Odd Future, Dirty Projectors, Passion Pit, Rick Ross, Santigold, Skrillex, Janelle Monae, Pearl Jam, Maybach Music (Rick Ross, Wale, Meek Mill), X, more
Jay-Z curates and headlines this new festival on Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia. President Obama may or may not do his Al Green impression.
WHAT: Hopscotch Festival
WHEN: September 6-8
WHERE: Raleigh, NC
WHO: Jesus and Mary Chain, Danny Brown, the Roots, Yo La Tengo, Julia Holter, Liars, Lambchop, Zola Jesus, Built to Spill, Baroness, Sunn O))), more
John Darnielle will play a two-part solo Mountain Goats set: the first part will be acoustic Mountain Goats songs, and the second will be... all metal covers on piano. Megafaun will collaborate with Arnold Dreyblatt, Chris Corsano will serve as the "improviser in residence." (Hopscotch is co-directed by Pitchfork Contributing Editor Grayson Currin.)
WHAT: ATP I'll Be Your Mirror
WHEN: September 21-23
WHERE: Asbury Park, NJ
WHO: The Afghan Whigs, Louis C.K., Godspeed You! Black Emperor, the Roots, Factory Floor, Hot Snakes, the Antlers, Thee Oh Sees, Sharon Van Etten, the Make-Up, more
Co-curated by the Afghan Whigs' Greg Dulli and ATP, I'll Be Your Mirror returns to the Jersey Shore town. There's a cinema, mini-golf, bowling, and unlimited play at the Silver Ball Museum Arcade and Pinball Hall of Fame.
EUROPE
WHAT: San Miguel Primavera Sound and Optimus Primavera Sound
WHEN: May 30 - June 3 and June 7-10
WHERE: Barcelona, Spain and Porto, Portugal
WHO: The xx, Mazzy Star, Justice, Grimes, AraabMuzik, Girls, Beach House, Wilco, Codeine, Jeff Mangum, Beirut, Japandroids, the Cure, Saint Etienne, M83, the Afghan Whigs, Suede, Spiritualized, more
Primavera has expanded to two festivals this year, one in Barcelona and one in Porto. Pitchfork curates a stage at the Barcelona fest, featuring the Weeknd, Grimes, Danny Brown, SBTRKT, A$AP Rocky, Real Estate, Sleigh Bells, Chromatics, Jamie xx, Purity Ring, and more.
WHAT: Field Day Festival
WHEN: June 2
WHERE: London, England
WHO: Mazzy Star, the Men, Rustie, SBTRKT, Sleigh Bells, Zomby, Liars, Hudson Mohawke, Gold Panda, Grimes, Andrew Bird, Austra, Chairlift, Beirut, Franz Ferdinand, Julia Holter, more
This fest in East London's Victoria Park will also feature "Village Green games," including tug of war, three-legged races, "teabag tossing," "egg and silver spoon race," and more.
WHAT: Roskilde Festival
WHEN: July 5-8
WHERE: Roskilde, Denmark
WHO: Bon Iver, Bjork, the Roots, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Jack White, the Cure, the Shins, Refused, A$AP Rocky, Trash Talk, Julia Holter, Korallreven, AraabMuzik, Oneohtrix Point Never, Modesektor, Alabama Shakes, more
Roskilde bills itself as "the lartest North European culture and music festival." So yeah, it's fucking massive. There's also the "more than music" component, featuring art installations and international performing artists.
WHAT: Bloc Weekend
WHEN: July 6-7
WHERE: London, England
WHO: Orbital, Snoop Dogg, Flying Lotus, Battles, Nicolas Jaar, Four Tet, Jacques Greene, Oneohtrix Point Never, James Blake, Squarepusher, DOOM, Steve Reich, Ricardo Villalobos, Hudson Mohawke, Joker, Actress, more
One of the stages at this electronic music extravaganza will be on the MS Stubnitz, "a deep-sea fishing vessel that belonged to the German Democratic Republic before the collapse of Communism."
WHAT: Latitude Festival
WHEN: July 12-15
WHERE: Suffolk, England
WHO: Bon Iver, M83, Explosions in the Sky, SBTRKT, tUnE-yArDs, Bat for Lashes, Amadou and Mariam, Yeasayer, Janelle Monae, Lana Del Rey, St. Vincent, the Horrors, the Antlers, the War on Drugs, Perfume Genius, Zola Jesus, Kurt Vile, more
In addition to music, Latitude hosts comedy, poetry, literature, art, theatre, film, and more.
WHAT: Antony's Meltdown
WHEN: August 1-12
WHERE: London, England
WHO: Lou Reed, Cocteau Twins' Liz Fraser, Laurie Anderson, Marina Abromovic, CocoRosie, Diamanda Galás, Matmos, Light Asylum, William Basinski, more
Each year's Meltdown at the Southbank Centre is curated by a different artist. Antony's lineup is a reflection of his musical influences and personal philosophy. The Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser will give her first full performance since 1998.
WHAT: OFF Festival
WHEN: August 3-5
WHERE: Katowice, Poland
WHO: Iggy and the Stooges, DOOM, Shabazz Palaces, Kurt Vile, High Places, Baroness, Iceage, Purity Ring, Battles, Suicide, Swans, the Antlers, Colin Stetson, Das Racist, Ty Segall, Thurston Moore, Fennesz
Sub Pop co-founder Jonathan Poneman curates the Experimental Stage, the Wedding Present perform Seamonsters in full, and Chrome Hoof will perform a live soundtrack to the cult Polish film Hydrozagadka.
WHAT: Øya Festival
WHEN: August 7-11
WHERE: Oslo, Norway
WHO: The Stone Roses, Bon Iver, the Black Keys, Odd Future, Feist, Florence and the Machine, Refused, A$AP Rocky, Best Coast, Chromatics, Cloud Nothings, Factory Floor, Frank Ocean, John Maus, Mazzy Star, the Afghan Whigs, Thurston Moore, St. Vincent, more
Øya takes place in Oslo's Medieval Park, where the city was founded a thousand years ago.
WHAT: Way Out West Festival
WHEN: August 9-11
WHERE: Gothenburg, Sweden
WHO: Blur, Refused, the Black Keys, Feist, Bon Iver, Florence and the Machine, Nicolas Jaar, Wilco, Frank Ocean, Bobby Womack, St. Vincent, Purity Ring, Mazzy Star, Hot Chip, The Afghan Whigs, Korallreven, the War on Drugs, A$AP Rocky, more
This year's Way Out West could very well be one of the final opportunities to see Blur live. The festival also features Stay Out West, after-shows in clubs around Gothenburg.
WHAT: End of the Road Festival
WHEN: August 21 - September 2
WHERE: North Dorset, England
WHO: Grizzly Bear, Beach House, Grandaddy, Willis Earl Beal, Dirty Three, Deer Tick, Mark Lanegan Band, Perfume Genius, Dirty Beaches, Porcelain Raft, more
Featuring comedians, cinema, workshops, something called the "Forest Dancefloor", and a library where you can take books out and return them at next year's fest.
